Churches Project no. 2 – St Materiana, Tintagel, Cornwall

I approached the church from Tintagel Castle along cliff tops with spectacular views out towards the Atlantic. The village of Tintagel is clearly visible in the background.

When I first arrived at St Materiana, I was greeted by a notice in the graveyard – ‘Beware Adders’. Needless to say I trod very carefully as I walked around trying to find the best position to photograph the exterior of the building.

The parish church of Tintagel is in the Anglican Diocese of Truro and county of Cornwall England. The Church was built between 1080 and 1150 and stands in an exposed position on Glebe Cliff overlooking the sea. St Materiana has been identified with St Madryn, a princess of Gwent, who, according to tradition, evangelised this area in about 500 AD. It is likely that the Church was built on the site of an oratory served in celtic days by the monks of Minster and later replaced by a Saxon style building. It appears to have been built on the site of intensive early Christian burial during the 5th to 7th centuries and the church today still retains an air of early Christianity.

The very large graveyard slopes away from the church, back towards the nearby village.

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